Sociodemographic factors associated with attitude towards mathematics in students of a Peruvian Public University (#1904)

Authors

Perez-Samanamud, Manuel Edwin

Perez-Guevara, Luciano

Sanchez-Garay, Nataly Janeth

Perez-Samanamud, Miguel Vladimir

Abstract

Mathematics is considered by many students as difficult, causing a negative attitude and often rejection, where pedagogical and non-pedagogical factors are involved, in the present research emphasis is placed on the non-pedagogical perspective, thus the question arises as to what sociodemographic factors are involved in this perception; since the attitude towards mathematics is the positive or negative predisposition towards a mathematical object. The purpose is to determine which sociodemographic factors are associated with the attitude towards mathematics in students of a Public University of Peru, 2022, the scale attitude towards mathematics of 24 questions with validity of Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and a collection form for sociodemographic factors were used; it is an observational, cross-sectional and prospective study with 412 students as sample, 11 sociodemographic factors were evaluated with the multifactorial ANOVA technique of main effects. Results. The associated sociodemographic factors are: the student's major, the degree of education of the parent and that parents tell their children that mathematics is difficult; the components that contribute most to the Mathematical Attitude are Usefulness, followed by the Affective and Emotional that the mathematical attitude should be and finally Confidence that one should have when facing a mathematical problem. Educational institutions should develop programs and orientation workshops for families on positive attitudes towards mathematics.